The Hinckley School

The Hinckley School
Location
Butt Lane Hinckley, Leicestershire , LE10 1LE England
Coordinates	52°32′49″N1°21′08″W / 52.5469°N 1.3523°W / 52.5469; -1.3523
Information
Type	Academy
Motto	Building Brighter Futures
Trust	The Futures Trust
Department for Education URN	148417 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Gender	Coeducational
Age	11to 18
Website	www.thehinckleyschool.co.uk

The Hinckley School (formerly John Cleveland College) is a coeducational secondary school located in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England. The school also includes the John Cleveland Sixth Form Centre.

History

Hinckley Grammar School was first mentioned in the parish records of 1629,^{[ citation needed ]} though it was certainly in existence before this time.^{[ citation needed ]} It was on Castle Road at the centre of Hinckley. However, in 1791 it was noted by the Universal British Directory that "The old town hall and school house remain, but are ruinous".^{[ citation needed ]} In 1831 it was noted by the same organisation as "In a very dilapidated state", and the old grammar school was pulled down 21 years later in 1852,^{[ citation needed ]} eventually being replaced by houses and shops. In 1877 a new school was opened, which in 1891 had 50 pupils. In 1894 moved to new purpose-built premises on Leicester Road, close to the current site. In 1901 the school admitted girls. In 1963 the grammar school moved to Butt Lane and the Leicester Road buildings were taken over by Mount Grace High School.

The school attained specialist Science College status, before converting to academy status in 2012. Previously an upper school for pupils aged 14 to 18, in September 2015 this expanded to include 11-year-olds and was renamed from John Cleveland College to Hinckley Academy. ^{[1] [ failed verification ]} In 2020, the school became part of The Futures Trust. ^[2] This led to the school being renamed from Hinckley Academy to The Hinckley School.

Facilities

The school campus includes a main hall, a swimming pool, a large canteen, a lecture theatre, a sports hall, a gym, astro turf pitches, a hospitality block, a media room, tennis courts, football pitches, rugby pitches, land athletics pitches and tracks, store rooms and a library (the Learning Resource Centre). During May–September 2010, phase 1 of the sports centre refurbishment took place; this consisted of changing facilities. During December 2010 work started on phase 2 to add upper changing facilities and swimming pool. The new facilities opened March 2011. During August 2011 the design technology foyer and washrooms received a complete re-design and refurbishment.

Awards

Awards include Investors in People, Artsmark Gold, International Schools Award and Healthy Schools Award status.^{[ citation needed ]}

Sport

The school runs football, rugby, basketball, hockey and kabbadi teams.

Notable former pupils and teachers

John Cleveland College

• Leicester Tigers and England rugby union footballers: Barry Evans; Graham Rowntree; Dean Richards; Ollie Smith; Sam Vesty; Manu Tuilagi; Sam Harrison ^{[3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]}
• Josh Ginnelly ^{[ citation needed ]}
• Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, former Leicester City footballer.
• David Eaton, British gymnast ^[9]

Hinckley Grammar School (pre-1974)

• Roger Clark MBE, rally driver ^[10]
• John Cleveland, poet ^[11]
• Rex Malcolm Chaplin Dawson, biochemist ^[12]
• Dill Faulkes, businessman and philanthropist ^[13]
• John F. Smith, musician
• Terry St Clair, musician
• Peter Tom CBE, Chief Executive from 1997 to 2005 of Aggregate Industries, and former rugby union player
• Philip Turner, author ^[14]

References

1. "Closing Leicestershire school sells off unusual items". 10 July 2015 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
2. "Hinckley Academy and John Cleveland Sixth Form Centre Joins The Futures Trust".
3. "List of England Rugby Internationals and their Schools – NextGenXV" . Retrieved 27 August 2025.
4. "Dean Richards - Sporting Speaker - Book from Arena Entertainment". Arena Entertainments. 29 September 2013. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
5. "Ollie Smith - The British & Irish Lions - The British & Irish Lions Website". www.lionsrugby.com. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
6. "Sam Harrison (Scrum-half)". Leicester Tigers. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
7. "Vesty Sam". Bath Rugby Heritage. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
8. "International call-ups for young Tigers". Leicester Tigers. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
9. "David Eaton Bio - The University of California Official Athletic Site". California Golden Bears Athletics. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
10. "Roger Clark profile on" . Retrieved 29 August 2025.
11. Various. "Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, "Clervaux" to "Cockade"Volume 6, Slice 5". www.gutenberg.org. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
12. Irvine FRS, Robin (March 2023). "Rex Malcolm Chaplin Dawson. 3 June 1924—29 March 2021". Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society. 75: 75–92. doi:10.1098/rsbm.2022.0040.
13. "UK schools to get robotic telescope". Physics World. 4 December 1998. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
14. "Philip Turner: Life, Works, and a List of Books by Author Philip Turner". www.paperbackswap.com. Retrieved 29 August 2025.